The present disclosure is related to a cooking apparatus, such as a pot, a pan, a wok, and the like. More particularly, the present disclosure is related to a cooking apparatus and methods of forming.
Cooking apparatus or cookware typically includes a cooking surface, a depending sidewall, and a handle attached to the sidewall. The cooking surface and wall are adapted to receive the food to be cooked. Heat can be conducted through the cooking surface from a heat source, such as a stove or oven, to cook the food thereon. The handle allows the user to move the cookware as desired, often times while the cooking surface is at an elevated temperature.
Accordingly, it has traditionally been desired to insulate and/or isolate the handle from heat conducted into the cooking surface and/or wall. For example, one solution has been to provide the cooking surface and wall of a highly conductive metal such as aluminum or aluminum alloys, with a handle of a different, lower conductive metal such as steel or iron. In this manner, heat conducted into the cooking surface quickly and evenly spreads across the cooking surface to evenly cook food thereon. However, the conduction of heat into the handle is slowed by the lower conductivity of the handle.
The handle and sidewall made of dissimilar metals has presented challenges in connecting the handle to the sidewall in an easy to clean, inexpensive, secure manner. For example, directly welding dissimilar metals to one another, namely the steel handle to the aluminum wall, is not possible. Thus, it has been necessary to secure or attach the handle to the wall with mechanical means, such as rivets, bolts, and the like. This solution has proven effective at maintaining a tight attachment between the wall and the handle. However, this solution requires a portion of the rivets or bolts to protrude through the wall into the cooking area, which can form areas that trap food particles and/or are difficult to clean.
Accordingly, there is a continuing need for cookware handle attachments and methods of forming that resolve or mitigate one or more of the aforementioned and other defects and deficiencies of the prior art.